Mehreen Fatima had already waited half-an-hour in the hot, jostling
line. But she was prepared to wait as long as it took in order to cast
her vote.
“I am going to vote for Imran Khan. He is the best chance to bring
change,” said the 20-year-old-student, who had travelled from Lahore to
her native village, Khudian, 40 miles south of the city to take part in
Pakistan’s election. “The biggest problem for Pakistan is corruption. It
is everywhere.”
In the neighbouring constituency, a few miles away, 65-year-old Mohammed Sadiq, who drives a tractor, had just cast his vote for Mr Khan’s rival, Nawaz Sharif. “The people who are educated in our village told us to vote for Nawaz Sharif,” said the old man, his face tanned and creased. “Imran Khan is only a sportsman. His people have not visited us; Nawaz Sharif’s party has come to see us.”
As Pakistan voted today in what could be a transformative election, the differences in approach so obviously on display in the rural heartland of central Punjab, politically the country’s most important province, as well as in the city of Lahore, will likely determine the result.
Violence threatened to mar the historical vote - the first time that a civilian government would hand power to their successors after a full-term - as two bombings killed 20 people in Karachi and the northwestern city of Peshawar.
Imran Khan, the 60-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician is depending on a large turn-out, especially of young, educated, first-time voters such as the Ms Fatima, an English student, who are exhausted by the country’s problems and ready for a fresh approach. Mr Sharif, by contrast is relying on his experience, having twice served as prime minister, and his record heading the provincial government.
As polls closed today after a busy but not frenetic day of voting and before official results were released, the clearest anecdotal impression was that supporters for Mr Khan and Mr Sharif were very evenly balanced. There were far few votes being cast, at least in Punjab, for the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of Asif Ali Zardari, which just completed a five year term, or any of the other smaller parties.
It was in the city of Lahore itself, Pakistan’s second largest city, that the fight between Mr Khan’s Movement for Justice and Mr Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) was at its fiercest, as the former sportsman tried to displace the former premier from his stronghold.
At polling stations, groups of young men gathered near each other chanting slogans. “Bat!” one young man shouted in Mr Khan’s constituency, referring to his appropriate election symbol. “Once more for the lion!” replied a group of Mr Sharif’s supporters, referring to his symbol.
At the last election, Mr Sharif's party dominated Lahore, winning all but two seats. This time, rival Mr Khan is poised to break that hold with at least a handful of seats in the city. On Saturday morning, droves of enthusiastic first-time Khan supporters, principally from the urban middle classes, were prominent.
“I voted for Imran Khan, I voted for change, I voted for the country,” said Haider Ali, 28, a student. “We've seen them all, the other politicians. They shouldn't come back.”
At a polling station established in the Lahore College for Women University, located in a constituency which Mr Khan himself was contesting, one family revealed their different preferences.
Samra Atif, 27, said she and her husband, a businessman, had voted for Mr Khan. However, her mother, Farhana Salman, had voted for Mr Sharif. She had also bullied her daughter into voting for Mr Sharif’s party in the provincial assembly ballot.
“Mr Khan can confront corruption, God willing,” said the younger woman’s husband, Atif Suleman. “We need change right now.”
Pakistan’s election campaign has been marred by violence with the death toll leading up to today’s vote totalling well over 100. Today, a further 20 people were killed as a result of bomb blasts in Karachi and Peshawar, and gun attacks in Baluchistan.
In Punjab, voting seemed to go reasonably smoothly and security was tight and some of the 600,000 security personnel spread out across the country, many of them heavily armed, were highly visible.
The PPP looks set to do badly in today’s vote. Although the party will likely collect votes in the western province of Sindh, there is widespread anger and frustration across the country as a result of electricity and energy shortages, the stumbling economy and pervasive corruption.
While both the PPP and Mr Sharif have been praised for their different roles on the completion of a full term by an elected government – a first for the country – there is little affection for Mr Zardari and the party has suffered from not having high-profile candidates during the campaign. The son and political heir of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, Bilawal Bhutto, has been noticeable by his absence.
In the neighbouring constituency, a few miles away, 65-year-old Mohammed Sadiq, who drives a tractor, had just cast his vote for Mr Khan’s rival, Nawaz Sharif. “The people who are educated in our village told us to vote for Nawaz Sharif,” said the old man, his face tanned and creased. “Imran Khan is only a sportsman. His people have not visited us; Nawaz Sharif’s party has come to see us.”
As Pakistan voted today in what could be a transformative election, the differences in approach so obviously on display in the rural heartland of central Punjab, politically the country’s most important province, as well as in the city of Lahore, will likely determine the result.
Violence threatened to mar the historical vote - the first time that a civilian government would hand power to their successors after a full-term - as two bombings killed 20 people in Karachi and the northwestern city of Peshawar.
Imran Khan, the 60-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician is depending on a large turn-out, especially of young, educated, first-time voters such as the Ms Fatima, an English student, who are exhausted by the country’s problems and ready for a fresh approach. Mr Sharif, by contrast is relying on his experience, having twice served as prime minister, and his record heading the provincial government.
As polls closed today after a busy but not frenetic day of voting and before official results were released, the clearest anecdotal impression was that supporters for Mr Khan and Mr Sharif were very evenly balanced. There were far few votes being cast, at least in Punjab, for the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of Asif Ali Zardari, which just completed a five year term, or any of the other smaller parties.
It was in the city of Lahore itself, Pakistan’s second largest city, that the fight between Mr Khan’s Movement for Justice and Mr Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) was at its fiercest, as the former sportsman tried to displace the former premier from his stronghold.
At polling stations, groups of young men gathered near each other chanting slogans. “Bat!” one young man shouted in Mr Khan’s constituency, referring to his appropriate election symbol. “Once more for the lion!” replied a group of Mr Sharif’s supporters, referring to his symbol.
At the last election, Mr Sharif's party dominated Lahore, winning all but two seats. This time, rival Mr Khan is poised to break that hold with at least a handful of seats in the city. On Saturday morning, droves of enthusiastic first-time Khan supporters, principally from the urban middle classes, were prominent.
“I voted for Imran Khan, I voted for change, I voted for the country,” said Haider Ali, 28, a student. “We've seen them all, the other politicians. They shouldn't come back.”
At a polling station established in the Lahore College for Women University, located in a constituency which Mr Khan himself was contesting, one family revealed their different preferences.
Samra Atif, 27, said she and her husband, a businessman, had voted for Mr Khan. However, her mother, Farhana Salman, had voted for Mr Sharif. She had also bullied her daughter into voting for Mr Sharif’s party in the provincial assembly ballot.
“Mr Khan can confront corruption, God willing,” said the younger woman’s husband, Atif Suleman. “We need change right now.”
Pakistan’s election campaign has been marred by violence with the death toll leading up to today’s vote totalling well over 100. Today, a further 20 people were killed as a result of bomb blasts in Karachi and Peshawar, and gun attacks in Baluchistan.
In Punjab, voting seemed to go reasonably smoothly and security was tight and some of the 600,000 security personnel spread out across the country, many of them heavily armed, were highly visible.
The PPP looks set to do badly in today’s vote. Although the party will likely collect votes in the western province of Sindh, there is widespread anger and frustration across the country as a result of electricity and energy shortages, the stumbling economy and pervasive corruption.
While both the PPP and Mr Sharif have been praised for their different roles on the completion of a full term by an elected government – a first for the country – there is little affection for Mr Zardari and the party has suffered from not having high-profile candidates during the campaign. The son and political heir of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, Bilawal Bhutto, has been noticeable by his absence.
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